Ericsson expands EMT’s LTE network nationwide in Estonia

Ubiquitous high-speed mobile broadband further accelerates the development of the Networked Society in Estonia, a country with advanced public e-services.
LTE network expansion brings a superior mobile-broadband experience to Estonians in sparsely populated areas.
Ericsson delivered the 800MHz LTE network as a turnkey project in only two weeks.

A new 800MHz license and an extraordinarily fast turnkey rollout by Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) gave the Estonian operator EMT, belonging to the TeliaSonera group, the chance to expand to nationwide LTE (4G) coverage six months earlier than originally planned. Access to the new spectrum enabled EMT to nearly double the geographical area covered by its LTE networks, bringing the benefits of advanced data speeds to rural areas.

Valdo Kalm, CEO at EMT, says: "Now, 95 percent of Estonia is geographically covered by our LTE network, which is very good news for our subscribers. Over 30 percent of our mobile-broadband subscribers have already opted for an LTE plan, and now we’re bringing that option to people in the other half of the country. Together with Ericsson, we were the first to launch LTE in Estonia in 2010. Our close relationship with Ericsson made it possible to roll out the new bandwidth quickly, so our customers could start enjoying LTE services throughout the nation."

Estonia’s telecommunications market is now among the most developed in the world, with nationwide LTE coverage. The extended LTE buildout supports businesses with processes that rely on real-time data, requiring online access anytime and anywhere.

Robert Puskaric, Ericsson’s Head of Region Northern Europe Central Asia, says: "Fast mobile broadband is a prerequisite for the Networked Society. We are proud to power EMT’s LTE network, which now reaches almost the whole nation. Connectivity is a starting point for discovering new ways of innovating, collaborating and socializing. Fast broadband and a wide range of public e-services in Estonia are underlining country’s position at the forefront of development."

Providing nationwide LTE as a full turnkey project included the supply of radio network equipment, the upgrade and expansion of Packet Core to Evolved Packet Core, rollout, integration and deployment services. This reaffirms Ericsson’s leadership in the LTE market and extends our long-standing relationship with EMT; we have previously been selected by the operator as sole supplier of its GSM, WCDMA/HSDPA and first LTE networks.

Ericsson has delivered more than 160 LTE/EPC networks worldwide, of which more than 90 have gone live commercially.

Notes to editors

Ericsson is a world-leading provider of communications technology and services. We are enabling the Networked Society with efficient real-time solutions that allow us all to study, work and live our lives more freely, in sustainable societies around the world.

Our offering comprises services, software and infrastructure within Information and Communications Technology for telecom operators and other industries. Today 40 percent of the world's mobile traffic goes through Ericsson networks and we support customers’ networks servicing more than 2.5 billion subscriptions.

We are more than 110,000 people working with customers in more than 180 countries. Founded in 1876, Ericsson is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. In 2012 the company’s net sales were SEK 227.8 billion (USD 33.8 billion). Ericsson is listed on NASDAQ OMX, Stockholm and NASDAQ, New York stock exchanges.